Nuggets: Fast DVD from Pioneer

It moves so fast it's a blur...

Pioneer is upping the stakes in the DVD-ROM drive market, with the promise of its 10x DVD-A04SZ drive -- the fastest DVD drive yet.

Data transfer rates clock in at 10x (13.5 MB/s) for DVD-ROM and 40x (6 MB/s) for CD-ROM. Seek and access times have also been bumped up, to 90ms and 100ms for DVD-ROM and 70ms and 80ms for CD-ROM. The drive supports multiple disc formats, including DVD-R and DVD-RW, and can cope with both single and dual layer discs, which is handy, particularly if you're a real enthusiast. As a little bonus and to convince gamers that DVD really is the future of gaming, Pioneer is chucking in DVD versions of FOX Interactive's X-Files and Interplay's Baldur's Gate.

Pioneer's slot-in disc loading mechanism -- similar to that used in in-car CD players -- grabs the disc by both edges without touching the data surface to cut down on wear and tear. So how much is this super speedy piece of kit going to set you back? Well I've got no idea: Pioneer refuses to tell Nuggets until nearer its launch, some time in October. Nice blokes eh?

I love gadgets so take me to the Nuggets Special page NOW!

There's a stupidly simple Nuggets competition going on at the mo. Click here and you could win some fab gear for your PC